Egyptian minister of antiquates Khaled el-Anani poses for picture with workers next to the head of a statue at the site of a new discovery by a team of German-Egyptian archeologists in Cairo's Mattarya district on March 9, 2017. Photos: AFP

The mystery of this giant statue may be solved soon

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An ancient colossus uncovered in Cairo last week may have depicted the famed pharaoh Psammetich I, Egypt’s antiquities ministry said on recently.

The fragments of the eight-metre (26-feet) tall quartzite statue were found by an excavation team in ground water at the site of an ancient temple for King Ramses II, now a working class district in Cairo.

But hieroglyphs on the statue’s fragments point to it having depicted Psammetich I, who ruled from 664 to 610 BC, the statement said.

Antiquities minister Khaled el-Enany told a news conference that the hieroglyphs said “Strong Arm” – one of the names of the 26th Dynasty pharaoh.

But “we don’t confirm 100 per cent that it belongs to Psammetich I” he told reporters at the Cairo Museum, where the fragments were taken.

It would require more study to find out whether Psammetich had simply appropriated an old statue.

More studies needed to know more about the Psammetich I statue.

The fragments found were part of the head and torso.

The excavation site was once the ancient Pharaonic capital of Heliopolis.

Part of another statue, belonging to King Seti II, was also unearthed by a joint German-Egyptian archaeological mission at the site. – AFP Relaxnews

Statues of the kings and queens of the nineteenth dynasty (1295 – 1185 BC) were unearthed in the vicinity of the Temple of Ramses II in what was the old Pharonic city.